What a wonderful week of below normal temperatures. We are coming off the weekend of the Indian Creek Invite and this cool weather really allows any stressed turf a chance to recover. We rolled a few extra times last week in preparation for the event so we are venting the greens this morning. We use 1/4" diameter needle tines at 3" spacing and 4" depth. We immediately follow that with one pass of a light weight roller to smooth out the surface and then we leave them alone.
Venting allows for gas exchange and increased water infiltration. When air temperatures are as cool as they are this week this process also allows for some temperature regulation in the soil.
Of all the management practices we have implemented in our greens program the last two years there is nothing that has had a greater impact then consistent and well timed venting.
The process is minimally invasive and doesn't have any great impact on puttability besides slowing the speed down a little bit. We will roll the greens again Wednesday and return to a normal mowing pattern by Thursday. This is a process we try and do every 14-21 days. In this case we are 8 days removed from the last venting process but with weather as nice as it is and coming off of a tournament weekend the timing couldn't be better for another round.
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